People Are Hurting Themselves While Grooming Their Pubic Hair, Study Finds

Whether you groom your pubic hair, remove it, or leave it alone is entirely up to you — but you definitely shouldn't be hurting yourself with a shave or wax. The Journal of the American Medical Association just released a study that shows 24 percent of men and 27 percent of women have injured themselves while grooming their pubic hair, The Cut reports. Ouch.

According to the study, researchers used a sample size of 5674 American men and women between the ages of 18 and 64, seeking to answer the question: "What are the prevalence and clinical correlates of injuries among US adults who groom pubic hair?" Of those surveyed, over two-thirds of men and over 85 percent of women stated that they groomed their pubic hair in some way, whether that involved "nonelectric blade, electric razor, wax, scissors, laser hair removal and/or electrolysis, or other" methods. It seems that no matter which one they chose, the subjects experienced some form of injury in every category. These ranged from cuts to burns — most of them minor, but some so severe that they required medical attention. Some respondents said they needed antibiotics, surgical incisions, or draining of an abscess — not what you want to be dealing with after body hair removal. And just to clarify, the majority of the injuries occurred in the pubic area — the scrotum for men and pubis for women.

While this study shouldn't stop you from grooming your pubic area if you personally choose to do so, make sure you read up on the safest, most effective method to shave down there, get a bikini wax, or even try more permanent methods like laser hair removal. Admittedly, pubic hair removal isn't always painless, but it definitely shouldn't leave you with an injury.